The trainer told police in an interview he fed his greyhound Jake boiled cannabis when he wanted him to lose races.

When the odds were better and Fowler wanted Jake to win, he would feed him Viagra or a testosterone-based drug – then watch him ‘run his head off’.

John Ellwood, prosecuting for the RSPCA, said police interviewed Fowler last September after receiving reports he was involved in selling cannabis.

Mr Ellwood said: ‘He admitted in interview that he fed his greyhounds cannabis when he wanted them to lose races. He did so by boiling the cannabis.

When he wanted the dog to win the race he injected it with a drug which turns out to be nandrolone, which is a testosterone derivative.

Race fixing: Fowler would also give dogs cannabis to slow them so they would lose races, a court heard (File picture)

‘He explained that the nandrolone and travel sickness pills which he had would affect the way the dogs would run and in particular he showed the officer Viagra tablets which according to him make them “run their heads off”.’

A greyhound trainer fed his dogs Viagra to run faster

Fowler was interviewed by an RSPCA inspector at a later date but by this time Jake was dead.

He escaped jail for causing unnecessary suffering to Jake but was given an 18-week custodial sentence, suspended for 18 months, and ordered to pay £1,000 costs at £10 a week.

Mr Ellwood told Hartlepool Magistrates’ Court that Fowler had Jake put down after he injured his shoulder at a race track.

The grandfather, from Stockton-on-Tees, previously admitted two charges of causing unnecessary suffering to Jake and two charges of administering drugs to a dog knowing it to be poisonous.

John Nixon, defending, said there was no evidence Jake suffered anything other than being lethargic after taking cannabis and pointed out that police sniffer dogs often ingest the drug.